Sandwiching machine



Jan. 28, 1964 R. J. FAY

SANDWICHING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Dec. 15, 1958 EE FQg o f ATTORNEYS.

Jan. 28, 1964 R. J. FAY

SANDWICHING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR-f ATTORNEYS.

Original Filed Dec. 15, 1958 Q $45M W United States Patent 3,11?,352SANDWKCHHJG MACHINE Rudolph I. Pay, Villa larh, Ill., assignor to PetersMachinery Qornpany, Chicago, ill a corporation of Illinois Originalapplication Dec. 15, 19553, Ser. No. 780,598, new Patent No. 2,993,453,dated l'uiy 25, 1961. Divided and application May 2d, 1961, Ser. No.113,468

12. Claims. ((1 107-1} This invention relates to a sandwicning machineof simple, durable and inexpensive construction for assembling thosetypes of sandwiches which comprise two cookies with a filler of cremebetween them, the machine having a conveyor for feeding cookies to acreme depositor which deposits a layer of creme thereon whereuponanother cookie is deposited on top of the layer of creme and thesandwiches thus assembled are delivered from the machine. The presentapplication is a division of my copending application Serial No.780,508, filed December 15, 1958, now Patent No. 2,993,453, issued July25, 1961.

Sue object of the invention is to provide a sandwiching machine in whichthe cookies are supported by a taut wire arrangement, fingers of aconveyor chain slide the cookies along the wires, the tension of thewires being adjustable, and means being also provided for adjusting theheight thereof to accommodate different thicknesses of cookies that aresmdwiched in the machine.

Another object is to provide a depressor for the completed sandwicheswhich is readily movable to an elevated position for permitting theremoval of any sandwiches which jam in the machine.

Still another object is to provide conveniently operable adjustingdevices for the tension of the wires, and for the elevation of the wiresat both ends thereof with respect to the frame of the machine andthereby with respect to cookie magazines and a creme depositor of themachine.

A further object is to provide the fore-going elements of such designthat they permit the forming of sandwiches at a relatively high ratesuch as 600 to 1,000 per minute in a double-row machine without unduebreakage of the sandwiches.

With these and other objects in view, my invention consists in theconstruction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of mysandwiching machine, whereby the objects above contemplated areattained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claimsand illustrated in detail on the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of my sandwiching machine and showsthe drivin mechanism for various parts of the machine;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of a portion of FIG. 1taken through a depos-itor assembly and shows a cutoff wire coactingtherewith;

FIG. 3 is a plan view mainly of the frame and cookie conveyor assemblyof my machine to show the relation of pants and the relation of the tautwires thereto;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side elevation showing a depressor;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is an enlarged side elevation of a portion of FIG. 3 adjacent theindicating arrow 6.

On the accompanying drawings I have used the reference numeral 10 toindicate two spaced side frames of my machine and 12 a base for the sideframes It).

A pair of supporting wires 14 is provided for each row of sandwiches tobe formed in the machine (two rows being shown) and the lefthand ends ofthe wires 3,ll9,352 Patented Jan. 28, 1964 are secured to a stem 16slidable through a bracket 13 and having a head 20 thereon between whichand the bracket a spring 22 is interposed. The wires extend upwardlyfrom the stem 16 and bend over a rod 24 to eX- tend toward the right,then lie in grooves of stub rods it) and 26, then wrap one turn aroundgrooved pulleys 28, en extend over grooved pulleys 30 and theirrighthand ends are secured to threaded stems 32. The stems 32 areslidable through a cross rod 34, and lock nuts 36 are provided foradjusting the tension of the wires. The springs 22 maintain the tensionsubstantially constant as variations in tension occur due to variationsin cookie load in the magazines 236 and in pressure of the creme(because of variations in its viscosity) when deposited on the cookies.

The stub rods 26 are supported on arms 33 and the stub rods aresupported on arms 42. The arms 35; are welded to a rock shaft lill onwhich is a sprocket 35 (see FIGS. 3 and 6). A chain 37 has one endsecured at 37 to the sprocket 35, extends over the sprocket and has itsother end secured to a pull screw 41 slidable through a bracket 39mounted on one of the side frames it). A hand wheel 43 is threaded onthe pull screw 41 for elevating the stub rods 26 thereby adjusting theheight of the supporting wires 14 at this point.

The arms 42 are pivoted on a cross rod 44 adjacent the left-hand end ofthe machine and a second ann 46 for each arm 42 constitutes therewith abell crank. These bell cranks are connected together by a bar 48 againstwhich a set screw 49 bears to adjust the bell cranks about the cross rod44 as a pivot. A hand wheel 50 on the set screw 49 is provided forturning the set screw.

A conveyor drive shaft 52 is provided on which are conveyor drivesprockets 54, and conveyor chains 56 extend around these sprockets andalso around sprockets R53 and idler sprockets 6t) and 62, all as shownin FIG. 1. The conveyor chains 56 are provided with pin-like fingers 64for propelling cookies and sandwiches along the taut supporting wires44- as will hereinafter appear. Chain supporting rails 221 are providedfor the chains 56, and side rails 233 for the cookies and sandwiches areprovided throughout the length of the machine.

The conveyor drive shaft 52 is driven by a pair of drive chains 66 and68 and suitable sprockets for reducing the speed in an obvious manner,the chain 68 being driven by an electric motor or the like 79 or otherprime mover for actuating my sandwiching machine.

In FIG. 1 a depositor drum 74 is illustrated, and in FIG. 2 some of thedetails thereof are shown including lands 136 between which are stencils134 surrounding a sleeve 72 into which creme is forced as fullydisclosed in my parent application hereinbefore referred to. Thedepositor forms no part of my present invention, being fully disclosedand claimed in said parent application and the patent which issuedtherefrom. Accordingly only a dew details thereof are shown in FIG. 2,the element 1% being a valve block for controlling the flow of creme.Also a cutoff wire 75 is shown supported by a pair of arms 77 and heldagainst the periphery of the depositor drum 74 by a spring 79. The arms77 are supported on arms 83 pivoted to a stationary bracket and providedwith an adjusting screw 81 to determine the ifore-andaft position of thewire 75 relative to the stencils 134.

The depositor drum 7 4 is provided with a drive sprocket 82 (see FIG.1). For driving this sprocket I provide a depositor drive chain 94 whichpasses under an idler sprocket 9'6 carried by a bell crank 98 having ahub Iliiil rotatable on the rock shaft 191. One end of a spring 162 isconnected to the bell crank 98, and the other end thereof is anchored toa stationary stud 1% so as to tend 3 to move the idler sprocket asdownwardly for keeping the chain 94 taut.

The chain $4 also passes around a drive sprocket 166, and around a pairof idler sprockets 108 and 1 ,26). The idler sprocket 163 is carried byan arm H pivoted at 112, and a differential adjusting screw 114 isthreaded into a block which is pivoted at 115 to the arm. A bracket 116is provided through which the differential adjusting screw 114 rotatablyand non-slidably extends, and the upper end of the screw is providedwith a hand Wheel 118 for adjusting the same for a purpose which willhereinafter appear.

For driving the sprocket 1% from the motor 7! a sprocket 122 is mountedon a shaft 124 on which the sprocket 166 is mounted, and the sprocket122 is driven by a pair of chains 126 and 128 in an obvious manner. Thusthe depositor drum 74 is driven cyclically with respect to the conveyorchain 56.

Located adjacent the right-hand end of the machine as illustrated inPEG. 1 are hold-down bars 219. These are mounted on rods 21?, that areslidable in brackets 214 pivoted at 216 to a stationary bracket 220 (seeFIG. 4). The rods 212 are threaded for adjusting nuts 222, and springs224 are interposed between the brackets 214 and the hold-down bars 219.Proceeding to the right-hand end of the machine in FIG. -1 a stackershaft 226 is illus trated on which stacker earns 23% are mounted.

Base cookie magazines of trough-like character 21% are provided fordelivering base cookies C to the sandwiching machine at one point, andsecondary or top cookie magazines 238 are provided for delivering topcookies C to the base cookies after the creme has been deposited on thecookies C The base cookies are re moved chest :1 time from the magazine236 by the conveyor fingers 64 while suitable escapement mechanism 239may be provided for the magazines 238.

Practical Operation When my machine is in operation the magazines 236will deliver base cookies C to the supporting wires 14, and the fingers64 will propel the base cookies along the wires, first to the depositor'74 where the deposits 135 of creme are applied, then to the magazines238 which deposit the top cookies C on the base cookies and the creme136 by operation of the escapement mechanism 139 whereupon the pins 64slide the sandwiches S (assembly of cookies C and C and deposit of creme135) along the wires 14 and along the inclined rails 211 under thedepressor bars 210 until the sandwiches overlie the stacker cams 236-.

The height of the wires 14 under the magazines 236 and the depositordrum 74 may be nicely adjusted by raising and lowering the stub rods 4tand 26 by manipulating the adjustment hand wheels 50 and 43respectively, the tension on the wires being substantially constantduring such height adjustment by reason of the springs 22. This tensionhowever can be adjusted by manipulating the lock nuts 36 on the stems 32if desired to compensate for stretch of the wires after extended use,and to compensate for expansion or contraction of the wires due toambient temperature conditions.

The creme 136 fed to the sleeve '72 flows past the open valve blocks 159and through the stencils 34 to be deposited on the base cookie C asshown in FIG. 2. As the depositor drum rotates counterclockwise in FIG.2 the cutoff wire 75 cuts off the creme for each stencil as it passesthe wire thus leaving a clearly defined deposit of creme 13s on the basecookie C The base cookies and their deposits of creme are propelled bythe fingers 64 along the wires 14 over the stub rods 26 and the pulleys28 to the magazine 238 which deposit the topping cookies C thereon. Inthe event the deposit of creme is not properly centered on the basecookie C the differential adjusting wheel 113 can be manipulated whilethe machine is in operation for shifting the portion of the chainassembly 94- extending over the sprocket S2 to rotate it in eitherrequired direction with respect to the sprocket 66, tension beingmaintained by the spring 162, and thus the adjustment is accomplished bya very simple differential type of mechanism.

The fingers 64 then propel the completed sandwiches S along the wires 14and then up the inclined rails 211 as they pass under the depressor bars21c which are adjusted so as to provide slight spring pressure tocompress the sandwiches S to uniform thickness (the softness of thecreme 136 permitting same), and hold them in position on the rails 211as they are propelled therealong by the fingers 64. In case of anymalfunctioning the depressor brackets 2.14 for the bars 21% may be swungupwardly about their pivots 216 to permit the removal of brokensandwiches. Finally the fingers 6 1 propel the sandwiches into aposition on top of the earns 23% and as the cams rotate clockwise theyup end the sandwiches and push them face to face along a platform (no-tshown) from the machine as disclosed in my parent application.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of theparts of my sandwiching machine without departing from the real spiritand purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by myclaims any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalentswhich may reasonably be included within their scope.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a machine of the character disclosed, a frame, a magazine forcookies or the like, means for engaging the cookies and conveying themalong said frame, a depositor for said cookies, taut wires forsupporting said cookies while being so conveyed from said magazine andpast said depositor, means for adjusting the tension and height of saidwires relative to said magazine and said depositor, and rails for saidcookies to slide along after they leave said wires, said rails beinginclined relative to said taut wires to disengage said cookies from saidwires, said means for engaging the cookies, conveying them along saidrails also.

2. In a sandwiching machine of the character disclosed, a frame, aconveyor having elements extending therefrom for engaging cookies or thelike and conveying them along said frame, taut wires for supporting saidcookies while being so conveyed, means for adjusting the tension andheight of said wires, rails for said cookies to slide along after theyleave said wires, said rails being inclined relative to said taut wiresto disengage said cookies therefrom, said conveying means engaging saidcookies and conveying them along said rails also.

3. In a sandwiching machine, a frame, a conveyor chain, means projectingtherefrom for engaging cookies or the like and conveying them along saidframe, taut wires for supporting said cookies while being so conveyed,means adjacent each end of said wires for adjusting the height thereof,means for adjusting the tension of said wires, and springs connectedwith said wires to insure substantially uniform tension thereof.

4. In a sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies or thelike along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, pivoted levers having grooved stub rods forsupporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted levers beingadjustable for raising and lowering said grooved stub rods thusadjusting the elevation of said wires, said wires declining from saidsecond stud rod, 21 grooved pulley around which said wires wrap once andthen extend at a lower elevation than the portions of said wires betweensaid stub rods, spring means for maintaining the tension on said wiresas they are adjusted by said pivoted arms, and threaded stems and locknuts for changing the tension thereof.

5. in a sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies or thelike along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, pivoted levers having grooved stub rods forsupporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted levers beingadjustable for raising and lowering said grooved stub rods thusadjusting the elevation of said wires, spring means for maintaining thetension on said wires as they are adjusted by said pivoted arms, andthreaded stems and lock nuts for changing the tension thereof.

6. In a sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies or thelike along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, pivoted levers having grooved stub rods forsupporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted levers beingadjustable for raising and lowering said grooved stub rods thusadjusting the elevation of said wires, said wires declining from saidsecond stub rod, a grooved pulley around which said wires wrap once andthen extend at a lower elevation than the portions of said wires betweensaid stub rods, and spring means for maintaining the tension on saidwires.

7. In a sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies or thelike along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, and pivoted levers having grooved stub rods forsupporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted levers beingadjustable for raising and lowering said grooved stub rods thusadjusting the elevation of said wires.

8. In a sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies or thelike along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, rails for said cookies to slide along after theyleave said wires, said rails being inclined relative to the direction oftravel of said conveying means to disengage said cookies from saidconveying means, and pivoted levers having grooved stub rods forsupporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted levers beingadjustable for raising and lowering said grooved stub rods thusadjusting the elevation of said wires.

9. In a sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies or thelike along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, rails for said cookies to slide along after theyleave said wires, said rails being inclined relative to the direction oftravel of said conveying means to disengage said cookies from saidconveying means, and pivoted levers having grooved 4 stub rods forsupporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted levers beingadjustable for raising and lowering said grooved stub rods, thusadjusting the elevation of said wires, said wires declining from saidsecond stub rod, and a grooved pulley around which said wires wrap onceand then extend at a lower elevation than the portions of said wiresbetween said stub rods.

10. In a sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies orthe like along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, said wires having one end anchored, pivoted leversfor supporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted leversbeing adjustable for increasing or decreasing the elevation of saidwires, and a grooved pulley around which said wires wrap once and thenextend to a second point of anchorage.

11. In a machine of the type disclosed, a frame, means for conveyingcookies or the like along said frame, taut wires for supporting saidcookies while being so conveyed, pivoted levers having grooved stub rodsfor supporting said taut wires at spaced points, said pivoted leversbeing adjustable for raising and lowering said grooved stub rods thusadjusting the elevation of said wires, said wires declining from thelast stub rod, a grooved pulley around which said wires wrap and thenextend to a point of anchorage, and spring means for maintaining thetension on said wires as they are adjusted by said pivoted arms.

12. A sandwiching machine, a frame, means for conveying cookies or thelike along said frame, taut wires for supporting said cookies whilebeing so conveyed, rails for sandwiches formed of said cookies to slidealong after they leave said wires, said rails being inclined relative tothe direction of travel of the cookies on said taut wires to disengagesaid sandwiches from said taut wires, a depressor for said sandwiches asthey pass along said inclined rails, said depressor comprising hold-downbars spring-biased to engage the sandwiches, and means for supportingsaid hold-down bars, said last means being pivoted for swinging upwardlyfrom a position over the sandwiches on said inclined rails to permitremoval of broken sandwiches.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Re.25,072 Monaco Oct. 31, 1961 1,585,114 Rondolin May 18, 1926 2,657,646Derbyshire et al Nov. 3, 1953

1. IN A MACHINE OF THE CHARACTER DISCLOSED, A FRAME, A MAGAZINE FORCOOKIES OR THE LIKE, MEANS FOR ENGAGING THE COOKIES AND CONVEYING THEMALONG SAID FRAME, A DEPOSITOR FOR SAID COOKIES, TAUT WIRES FORSUPPORTING SAID COOKIES WHILE BEING SO CONVEYED FROM SAID MAGAZINE ANDPAST SAID DEPOSITOR, MEANS FOR ADJUSTING THE TENSION AND HEIGHT OF SAIDWIRES RELATIVE TO SAID MAGAZINE AND SAID DEPOSITOR, AND RAILS FOR SAIDCOOKIES TO SLIDE ALONG AFTER THEY LEAVE SAID WIRES, SAID RAILS BEINGINCLINED RELATIVE TO SAID TAUT WIRES TO DISENGAGE SAID COOKIES FROM SAIDWIRES, SAID MEANS FOR ENGAGING THE COOKIES, CONVEYING THEM ALONG SAIDRAILS ALSO.